Explosive Wastes Advantages And Disadvantages

Explosive wastes were defined as any device or material either is chemically or otherwise energetically unstable, that can produce a sudden expansion of the material and resulting in the production of heat or a large change in pressure. Examples of explosive waste are fireworks, commercial explosives, military explosives, homemade explosive devices, small and large ammunition and pressurized gas vessels, and cylinders. The disposing of these explosive materials is carried out when there is no storage capacity for mostly outdated munitions and the less stable explosive materials such as nitrocellulose. The most common method used in disposal these explosive wastes are open burning and blasting.
The open burning is mainly used for propellants,

The wastes and oxygen are put into a bath of molten caustic salt which usually sodium carbonate or mixture of potassium carbonate and sodium. The wastes will be oxidizes and producing carbon dioxide, water molecule, nitrogen and oxygen. Meanwhile, the ashes and soot are remains in the melt. Then, the salt is removed and disposed or recycle. The advantages of molten salt oxidation are no mustard gas detected in the emitted gases and effective for destruction and disposal. However, the disadvantages of molten salt oxidation are there is possibility of overheated vapor explosion, there is presence of organic compound in the gases produced which can affect the environmental such the nitric oxides and hydrocarbon and the salt used are soluble and need to be treated as toxic waste in a landfill.
The molten metal pyrolysis involves the uses of metal to decompose the organic compound like chemical agent. The metals used are copper, iron or cobalt at 3000oF. The disadvantages of this technology are gases produce from the furnace contains more soot produced from the metal pyrolysis and can produce slag particulate matter. This problem requires a resolution technique to clean the gas before

A pressurizes water is mixed with chemical agents and heated up to more than 705oF as the organic compound become soluble. The advantages of supercritical water oxidation are the oxidation was a complete oxidation with no products of incomplete combustion, the water effluent can be collected and analyzed and recycle if it harmful to be discarded to environment. However the side effects of this technology are high operation pressure can cause leaks and there is problem with corrosive as the salt formation inside the reactor chamber may affect the facility